


Come Back Home

by Zetal (Rodinia)



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Coach/Skater Relationship, M/M, Mentor/Student to Friends to Lovers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-01
Updated: 2018-05-01
Packaged: 2019-04-30 15:09:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,647
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14499693
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rodinia/pseuds/Zetal
Summary: A look at Phichit and Celestino's relationship over the years.





	Come Back Home

**Author's Note:**

> Happy birthday, Phichit! I'm so sorry it's late.

Unlike his best friend, Phichit wasn’t one to work himself any harder than he had to. This is not to say he was lazy or that he didn’t take his skating career seriously – he had goals and dreams and he was more than willing to put in the work it would take to have a chance at making them come true. It’s just that he wasn’t willing to sacrifice his chance to have fun and enjoy his life to do it. Yuuri had gotten much better once Phichit got to him, which, to Yuuri’s surprise, showed as an improvement in his skating. He’d gotten even better about taking time off to have fun and recharge his batteries once Viktor showed up, and now he was winning medals in the Grand Prix Finals and the Olympics.

Yuuri had helped Phichit make the adjustment from the much more casual approach of training around the rest of his life back home in Thailand to having a life around his training when he got to Detroit. For the first month or so, Phichit was absolutely convinced Celestino was disappointed in him and thought he was a slacker who would never be any good. On the flight home from Phichit’s first competition with Celestino, where Phichit had taken fourth, Phichit had to ask. “Are you going to kick me out?”

Celestino’s eyebrows nearly flew off his head. “Why would I do that? Do you want to leave?”

“No! But… compared to the others, I’m way behind, and I’m already having trouble keeping up with what you want me to do, how am I supposed to catch up?”

“Phichit, I’m not holding you to the standards I hold Yuuri or Amy or any of the others to. Don’t compare yourself to them, compare yourself to where you were a month ago, a year ago. I did my scouting research thoroughly. I knew what skills you were coming in with, and yes, you are somewhat behind where most skaters I work with are at your age. That’s okay. It’ll take…”

“Hard work. I know. And isn’t that the problem? I’m barely keeping up!”

Understanding dawned in Celestino’s eyes. “Phichit, I’ve had students who have been in Olympic preparation training since before they were eligible for novices who have struggled to keep up when they get to my rink. I expect a lot out of my skaters, and the only student I’ve ever had who didn’t have to learn to adjust to it was Yuuri. There’s nothing wrong with your work ethic, just your conditioning, and again, that’s something I knew to expect. You’re already starting to get there, and it will get easier for you. I promise. I’ve watched most of my students go through this. You’re actually doing a little better than I’d expected, which I think has to do with you latching on to Yuuri.”

“I’m not holding Yuuri back too much?”

Celestino scoffed. “You’re doing something I’ve been trying to figure out how to do for over a year now. Yuuri needs to loosen up and have some fun, and you’re a great choice to show him how. It’s why I was so eager to get you. Not for Yuuri, specifically. I can teach you how to do a triple axel. I can’t teach you how to pop up after a fall laughing and hoping it was on video because of all the Instagram likes you’ll get. That ability to find the fun side of the worst parts of skating, that’s what’s going to make you a star. And if being around you helps the others learn to take things with that sense of humor, well, you’re learning from them, too. Everyone wins.”

From then on, Phichit stopped worrying about it when he had to stop a workout or when he had trouble learning something that he watched everyone else doing easily. He put in the work, and as Celestino had promised, keeping up during practices became easier as he got the conditioning in. The friendships he developed made it even better, and those friendships lasted even after skaters left the rink for whatever reasons they had.

 

After Phichit medaled at Four Continents, he decided it was time to do something he’d dreamed of for years. “Hey, Ciao Ciao? I know there’s still Worlds and I shouldn’t be losing focus on this year, but there’s something I want to skate next year.”

“Oh? Don’t tell me, you want to skate to ‘Come Back Home’ and hope Yuuri gets the message?”

Phichit snickered. “No, what kind of pathetic person skates a program to send a message to someone else? I still think he’s gonna be on the ice next season, but that’s his call.”

“Okay. What do you want to skate?”

“Music from _The King and the Skater_. Specifically, ‘Shall We Skate.’ I know a lot of people use it, but no one from Thailand has, and it’s our story. I’ve wanted to do this for years, and I think I’m finally ready to do it justice.”

Celestino nodded slowly. “I think you’re right. You’re on the edge of a breakout, and I think you could do ‘Shall We Skate’ without being compared to other skaters who have done it before. Do you think it would help you to go back home?”

“Well, I’m gonna go home in April for my birthday, of course, but…”

“No, not for a visit. Moving back home.”

Phichit wanted to go home. Detroit had gotten boring without Yuuri to be his partner in crime, and he missed Thailand. “Are you suggesting I leave?” As much as he missed Thailand, he couldn’t imagine finding a better coach there, and he could call home and visit when he had the chance. That wasn’t going to work as well for his coach.

“Leave Detroit, yes. Leave me, no. I’d go with you.”

Phichit stared at Celestino, trying to process that. “What about the others?”

“Amy’s willing to come on the condition that you help her adjust to Bangkok like she helped you figure out Detroit, and Jake’s retiring since his wife’s expecting twins.”

“You’ve been thinking about me going home long enough to have talked to Jake and Amy about it?” This was not helping with Phichit’s mind being blown by the offer. He hadn’t even considered going back to Thailand as anything more than a pipe dream someday thing, and here Celestino was figuring out how to do it.

“You want to build up Thailand’s skating program, and it’ll be easier for you to do that if you’re in Thailand and can do appearances and press conferences and skate-with-Phichit days more easily. Between Yuuri and Jake both leaving and your medal at Four Continents, this seems like a good time to do it.”

 

Being back in Thailand felt amazing. After a few years, Amy went home, but by then, Phichit had picked up some Thai rinkmates. Thai skating was definitely on the rise.

Phichit spent most of his 25th birthday on the beach. He and Celestino walked down there shortly before dawn. “I know you’ve probably got quite a few years left, but have you thought at all about retiring, Phichit?” Celestino asked as they set up their chairs to watch the sunrise.

“You mean what I want to do afterwards? Yeah. I’ve done a lot already to get Thailand more interested in figure skating, but I was thinking I’d try to put together an ice show here. I know everyone I need to know to get started, so it’s just a matter of pulling things together. Were you wanting to go back to Detroit?”

“No, not really, all my students are here now and it’s not like Detroit was home for me. I keep in touch with my friends there online, and I’m settled in here. I’m not planning on leaving any time soon.”

“Good.” Phichit reached out and took Celestino’s hand. “You know what the best part of turning 25 is?”

“You’re old enough to rent a car all by yourself without paying ridiculous fees?”

“Only until they look at my driving record!” Phichit stuck his tongue out at Celestino. “Nah. The best part about turning 25 is that my idiot brother officially has to shut up about my boyfriend being more than twice my age.”

"Ha! True. He probably still won't approve, but that's okay. It's not like I don't see his point, considering I'm your coach. From the outside, this isn't exactly what most people would consider a normal relationship."

"Yeah, I know. Don't really care, though, and hey, we know my mom thinks my brother's the idiot, not me."

Phichit's 21st birthday, his mother had pulled him aside, very upset, wanting to know when Phichit planned to tell her he'd found love and happiness. "I wasn't too sure when you brought him here, but your boyfriend has been everything I could have wished for you. I know, it's your life and you probably have a good reason for not telling me, but I just need to know that it's not that you're afraid that I won't support you."

"Um, I'd tell you about my boyfriend if I had one, Mom."

"What do you call Celestino, then?"

"My coach? My friend, sure, but we're not..." Phichit trailed off, trying to figure out where the hell his mother had gotten the impression that he was dating Celestino. "Mom, it's not like that."

"Well, it should be. You two are good for each other."

Celestino had been just as weirded out when Phichit's mom pulled him aside to tell him that he and Phichit should date. At first, the two of them agreed to forget about it, but neither one could. Phichit's mother was very smug as she helped her son move in with Celestino after the Grand Prix Finals that year, where Phichit took silver.


End file.
